We're made from clay but also from a spirit that is not of this world. Negotiations between the two are now in session. Meanwhile, you may find here some reviews, commentary, translations, short fiction, links to various articles, excerpted quotes, exegesis, and anything else that has a chance to kindle, edify, anger, or draw a yawn. •••Twitter••• @i_abusharif

Friday, August 31, 2007

The Artery of Language

The quote below is an unintended insight I came across when looking for something else in a highly recommended book called Death Sentences (by Don Watson), a serious critique of how political- and business-speak are damaging language and its use in public dialogue.

[A] cathedral is the property of the church, whereas a language belongs to civilization, and if [language] is dragged down it takes civilization with it. Language is not just a preserver or bearer of tradition. Words do more than the elemental thing of linking one generation to another. The great works of public language like the Book of Common Prayer are poetic works. In the poetry is themystery with which religion is concerned and on which it depends. . . . Many churchpeople will tell you that when it adopted everyday modern prose, the church cut off an artery to its soul.

I would extrapolate a bit and say: The style of scripture, in other words, is part of the message and the lasting hope that what the words say will always have a chance at influencing people because of how they are stated.

2 Comments:

I couldn't agree more. The dumbing down of language, especially in beautifully poetic religious texts is like translating Shakespeare into common idiomatic English. Now that would be a tragedy, like some English translations of the Qur'an for the layman. It is the language that engages the mind and fires the soul.

Words are of sacred origin. Our modern lanugage is a mere corruption of the original language of Adam (peace be upon him) and of revelations to the other prophets (peace to them all). In my view the more different translations of the Quran and the Bibles, the better. Because each one opens another layer of meaning. But when we want the real thing, we return to the source -- in the source language.

About Me

Twitter: @i_abusharif
.................................
Born and raised in the Chicago area, Ibrahim is a professor of journalism at Northwestern University in Qatar. His research interests include the intersection of media and culture; literary journalism; media in the Arab world; and religion and media. He is also a journalist and a writer of non-fiction and fiction. His articles have appeared in numerous newspapers and magazines, both print and online. He has also worked closely on translation projects of the Quran. And he finds it very interesting to write about himself in the third person like this. It's possible he'll revise this introduction and be more personable. But "not now!" he says. (Email: fromclay1@yahoo.com)